Computing cheese-cutter.



UNITED sfrATEs lPATENT OEEIOE. A

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 5, 1905.

Application filed July 261904;. Serial No. 218,288.

` T all whom/it may concern: I

Be it known thatI, JOHN BERG, a citizen of the United States, residing at Anderson, in

. the county of Madison and State of Indiana,

have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Computing Cheese-Cutters, ofi which the following is a specification.

This in-vention relates to improvements in means for ascertaining the correct size of slice of a value called for that should be cut from a circular lcheese of a known value and to means for expeditiously and accurately cutting off the quantity indicated.` y

The cheese will be mounted on a rotary table and will be brought by the rotation of the table under a knife moving in a vertical plane.

The object of this invention is to provide a 'positively rotating'the table and holding it at a given position; third, to provide means for raising and lowering the cutting-knife, where- 5 by its inner corner will move on a 'substantially straight'line while passing throughthe cheese, so as to avoid cutting past the center and crumbling the cheese there, as is kinevitable with an ordinary swlngingmovement of the knife, and a fourth object is to provide a convenient and accurate price-indicator and gage. Y

I accomplish the objects of the invention by the mechanism illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a top plan View of my invention with the knife-handle and knife and also the platform or table removed and showing some of the parts broken away; Fig. 2, aside elevation and partial vertical section of same; Fig. 3, a detail in plan View of the base or inner end of the knife-handle. Fig. I is a side view, partially in section, and Fig. 5 a front view, of the price-indicator and gage; and Fig. 6 is an enlarged detail of the worm-shaft, showing in section the means of securing the indicator-hands and stop mechanism thereto.

i the under side of which a worm-gear G is fastened, so as to move with the hub. A circular board C is fastened, by means of screws, to the plate B, and the cheese A A is deposited upon this board with its center above the center of the board. l D D represent a pair of brackets which are parallel with each other and are bolted to the base-plate. and lthe cam-slots O, which start ona level with slots P and extend upwardly and rearwardly,then upwardly andforwardly, and then in a curve rearwardly. f

l E is the handle or lever to which the knif F is bolted. It has a bifurcated rear end, as

They have the horizontal slotsP shown' in Fig. 3, and L is a pin carried by the plural members of the handle. The ends of this pin pass into the slots P of the brackets. The plural members of the handle also have the pin N, on the ends of which are the rollers M M, which enter the respective cam-slots O. Taking the handle in its lowered position `with its knife down, as shown in Fig. 2, the action on raising the handle is to move the handle and knife rearwardly by the shape of 1 the slot at a rate just sufficient to cause the corner of the. knife to follow a straight vertical line at the center of the cheese instead of acurved one, as would obtain were it moved `around axed'pivot. l y

Mounted in a lug on the under side of the base and in the bearing I is the shaft Q, which is held in place by the set collar J, and mounted-on the shaft is the worm-wheel H, having engagement with the gear G. Secured by means of screws vor otherwise to the base A is the circular wooden disk S, which is covered with the graduated plate T, preferably a plate of metal, though other material might be used. Y y

K represents balls seated in pockets in the arms of the base -to lessen the friction between the rotating plate B and the base A.

Mounted on the outer end of the shaft Q is the crank W, and loosely mounted on the shaft between the crank and the plate T is the threaded bushing Z Z, `on which are mounted the gage U and the indicator-hand V, andthe last two parts are held frictionally in any given adjustment by the nut Z, which screws upon the threaded bushing in the man-f ner shown in Fig. 6. Secured to the gagebar U is the spring Y, which bears atits free end toward the disk S, and to this free end of the spring the wooden block X or block IOO of other good friction material is fastened and by the action of the spring makes strong friction contact with the disk. The right edge of the gage U is in a line diametrieally of the graduated plate T. It has the notch 2 to receive the lug 3 on the crank W when the crank is in closest relation to said gage, and the indicator-hand Vhas the notch 4 to allow its edge to pass the said lug just suicient to contact with the right-hand edge of gage U.

The operation of the device is as follows: To determine the size of, say, a five-cent slice out of a six-dollar cheese, it is ascertained by dividing siX hundred cents by five cents that one hundred and twenty five-cen t slices should vbe obtained. Then by multiplying three hundred and sixty degrees, the degrees of a circle, by twenty-four, the number of teeth in the gear-wheel, the number eight thousand six hundred and forty is obtained, which divided by the above number one hundred and twenty gives seventy-two degrees as the are of the circle measured on plate T that the crank W must travel to move the board C so as to pass the required quantity of cheese under the knife. The gage U, crank W, and hand V are normally together at the top of the graduated plate T, and after the number seventy-two has been obtained by calculation the hand V is moved down that many olegrees on the graduated plate and there remains to act as a stop for the crank when the latter is turned, thus measuring the first fivecent portion. If double that amount, as tencents worth, is required, the block X is drawn out of contact With disk S and the gage-bar U moved till its notched end contacts with the lug 3 on crank W. The friction between bar U and hand V causes the latter to move to a new position seventy-two degrees from the place of its first stop, where it again acts as a stop for the handle W to measure the second five-cents worth of cheese. The above operations are repeated until as many multiples of live-cents worth as may be required are measured ed.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim as new, and wish to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. In a computing cheese-cutter, a base, a

.rotary table, brackets mounted on said base having horizontal and cam-shaped slots, a knife having pins entering said slots, a worm-gear securedl to said table, a Worm-wheel engaging said gear, means for rotating the worm-wheel, and means for measuring and controlling the movement of said wheel, comprising a graduated disk, an index-hand, and a gage-bar to gage the movement of the index-hand.

2. In a computing cheese-cutter, a base, a pair of brackets supported by said hase having horizontal and cam-shaped slots, a knife having pins moving in said slots, a rotary table mounted on said base, ball-bearings between the base and table, a worm-gear of less diameter than the table, secured to the table, a worm-wheel engaging said gear, ashaft on which the worm-wheel is mounted, means for rotating the worm-wheel shaft` and means for measuring and controlling the movement of said wheel, comprising a graduated disk, an index-hand, and a gage-bar to gage the movement of the index-hand.

3. In a computing cheese-cutter, a base, a rotary table mounted on said base; a bracket secured to said base having horizontal and cam-shaped slots, a knife-handle pivotally secured to said bracket by pins entering said slots, and a knife attached to said handle.

4. In a computing cheese-cutter, a base, a rotary table mounted on said base upon which the cheese is placed, a pair of brackets secured to said base each having opposite horizontal slots and adjacent cam-shaped slots, a handle having a pin for each set of slots said pins loosely entering said slots, and a knife attached to said handle.

5. In a computing cheese-cutter, a rotary table on which the cheese is placed, a lever or handle having oscillatory movement above the table in a plane through the axis of rotation of the latter, a knife secured to said handle and having like oscillatory movement through the whole cutting' stroke, and means for moving the knife longitudinally to cause its lower corner to move constantly in a straight line along the axis of the rotary table.

(i. In a computing cheese-cutter, a rotatable table, brackets having cam-slots, and a knife having pins moving in said slots thereby imparting to the knife a constant compound oscillatory and longitudinal movement radially of the table in a lvertical plane whereby one corner of the knife will follow the axis of the table through the thickness of the cheese.

7. In a computing cheese-cutter, a rotatable table, brackets having cam-slots, and a knife having pins moving in said slots thereby imparting to the knife a constant compound oscillatory and longitudinal movement in a plane through the axis of the table.

8. In a computing cheese-cutter, a base, a rotatable table, a support outside of the table havingI a horizontal slot and a cam-slot adjacent to the latter, a handle having pins entering both of said slots, and a knife fastened to the handle radially of the table and having a lower corner moving at all positions of its cutting travel in the axis of the table.

9. In a computing cheese-cutter, a rotatable table, a pair of brackets supported independently of the table, each having horizontal slots and adjacent cam-slots which pass upwardly and outwardly then upwardly and inwardly and then in curves outwardly or rearwardly over the horizontal grooves, a handle having bifurcated rear ends making a close lit between the pair of brackets, a pair of pins passing through the bifurcated ends ofthe handle and havingends terminating in said grooves TOO IIO

of the brackets, the pin for the cam-grooves having friction-rollers and a knife attached to said handle.

10. In a computing cheese=cutter, a rotatable table,a worm-gear secured to the under side thereof, a worm wheel engaging the wormr gear, a shaft on which the worm-wheel is ing diametrically of the graduated plate and having a friction-block at one end to engage `the, rim of the plate and an adjustable indexhand also mounted on the bushing.

11. In a computing'cheese-cutter, a rotatable table,a worm-gear secured to the under side of the table, a shaft, a worm-wheell mounted on the shaft and engaging the worm-gear, a graduated circular plate fixed at the edge of .the table through which the shaftfpasses, a fry., crank on the end of the shaft, a gage-bar and ian index-hand between the crank and the graduated plate adjustable in angular relation with each other but ordinarily moving together, and means for holding a given position i y of each.

circular wooden disk fastened near the "edge of the table, a graduated plate outside of said disk, said shaft passing through the plate and disk, a crank on the outer end of the shaft, a threaded bushing loosely mounted on the shaft between the crank and graduated plate, a gagebar and an index-hand mounted on the bushing, a nut screwing on the bushing to frictionally join the said bar and hand, said bar having an end spring and a friction-block se-v cured to the spring and pressed by it against the disk, said crank having an inside lug and said bar and hand having edge notches to receive thelug- 13. In a computing cheese-cutter, a rotatable table, a pair of brackets supported independently of the table, each having horizontal slots and adjacent cam-slots which pass upwardly and outwardly then upwardly and inwardly and then in` curves outwardly or rearwardly over the horizontal grooves, a handle having parts making close lit between the pair of brackets, pins from said handle moving in said grooves of the brackets and a knife fixed to the handle. I l In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand and seal at Indianapolis, Indiana, this V14th day of-July, A. D. 1904:.

JOHN BERG.' [L s.] `Witnesses:

ANTON BERG, J. A. MINTURN. 

